What strategy will Red Bull implement to give Verstappen F1 title glory in Las Vegas?

Max Verstappen is on the brink of securing his fourth F1 drivers’ championship, but in the chilly night air of Las Vegas, Red Bull have been working to find a strategy that will cement such an honour.

All Verstappen primarily needs to do is finish ahead of McLaren’s Lando Norris to wrap up his latest title and join an elite club of just six drivers to have won four or more.

The Dutchman landed the first blow by finishing ahead of Norris in qualifying, with the duo lining up next to each other on the third row of the grid in fifth and sixth respectively.

It has been clear so far that neither Red Bull nor McLaren have the pace to match either Mercedes or Ferrari, with George Russell on pole ahead of Carlos Sainz.

Alpine’s Pierre Gasly was the surprise package of qualifying, with the Frenchman finishing third ahead of Charles Leclerc in the second Ferrari.

However, tire choice for everyone involved will be more critical than usual for a race given the cold temperatures when the race starts at 22:00 local time and around the low-grip Las Vegas Street Circuit.

Red Bull underlined with a high-fuel run at the start of the final practice that the medium Pirelli compound does not last. Verstappen anxiously claimed over the radio that he feared crashing, such was the breakdown of his tires after just nine laps.

Pirelli claims a one-stopper is the fastest route to the checkered flag, subject of course to any eventualities, and there are two options – starting on medium and running for about a third of the 50-lap race before switching to the hard connection. .

Alternatively, it’s just as fast to start on the hard and potentially go as long as the 34th lap before taking on the media.

But will Red Bull trust the media after what they saw in FP3? That could lead to a potential two-stop by starting on the softs for a short stay before two spells on the hards.

Ferrari has the advantage over Russell

Of course, as this race is a street circuit, the team’s strategists will be aware of the high probability of a red flag stop, as was the case in qualifying when Williams’ Franco Colapinto crashed at the end of FP2.

Verstappen and Norris both have exactly the same set of tires at their disposal – two sets of new hards, one set of fresh mediums and three sets of used softs.

From McLaren’s perspective, it will take something special for Norris to achieve a result that will at least take the drivers’ title race into next weekend’s race in Qatar.

McLaren will also be mindful of damage limitation for Ferrari given Sainz and Leclerc’s starting positions compared to Norris and Oscar Piastri, who start eighth, with the former holding a 36-point cushion.

As far as the battle for the race win is concerned, Sainz and Leclerc seem to have the advantage over Russell.

The British driver has no fresh sets of any mix – two used hards, one medium and three softs. In contrast, Sainz and Leclerc have two new sets of hard and one of medium. Could it be the key to a Ferrari win?